Cricket’s T20 Evolution: Entertainment Over Tradition

Cricket’s T20 evolution is one of the clearest examples of a sport deliberately choosing entertainment-first – and largely succeeding – while still wrestling with what it means for tradition.

The case for entertainment

T20 has done what cricket desperately needed in the 2000s:

• Saved attention spans in a world of streaming, social media, and instant highlights.
• Brought in new audiences – families, kids, casual fans, and people who’d never sit through five days of Test cricket.
• Commercially transformed the game, giving players viable careers through leagues like the IPL, BBL and others.
• Made cricket global – friendly: a full match in three hours fits modern life far better than a day (or five).

From a pure survival standpoint, T20 didn’t just modernise cricket – it future proofed it.

The cost to tradition

• Reduced nuance: field placements, long spells, patience, and attritional batting matter less.
• Format imbalance: young players increasingly grow up training for T20 skills
• scoops, slower balls, power hitting-sometimes at the expense of defensive technique.
• Calendar congestion: franchise leagues can overshadow international cricket, bilateral series.
• Homogenisation: pitches, strategies, and even commentary can feel similar across leagues.

The fear isn’t that T20 exists -it’s that it becomes the default, slowly hollowing out Tests and even ODI’s.

Where T20 actually helps tradition

Ironically, T20 has also:

• Funded Test cricket, especially in smaller nations.

• Created stars who later draw audiences to longer formats.

• Lowered the entry barrier—once someone loves T20, some do graduate to appreciating Tests.

The issue isn’t entertainment vs tradition—it’s balance and governance.

My take: T20 is a gateway, not the enemy

T20 isn’t killing cricket. Poor scheduling, weak Test promotion, and uneven financial models are bigger threats.

If managed well:

• T20 = the hook

• ODIs = the bridge

• Tests = the soul

Cricket doesn’t need to choose between fireworks and five-day epics. It just needs to stop pretending one can replace the other.